Jody Adams talks family and food_BINARY_1004759

A James Beard-winning chef is visiting her mother for Mother's Day?

Chef Jody Adams, owner of Rialto in Cambridge, Mass., and co-owner of Trade on Atlantic Wharf in Boston, was in Providence this week to see Mom Virginia "Po" Adams. Jody was raised on the East Side of Providence and graduated from Brown University.

The James Beard winning chef reflected on food and family and how the two influenced her.

How did you fall in love with food?

Jody: "We traveled quite a bit. And my mother gave us free reign in the kitchen. She was an adventurous cook herself. My parents like to entertain, and the dinner table was central to our family life. The stage was set. I always loved to cook, even as a young girl. But I started really cooking after spending time in a kitchen in Guatemala, one in Morocco and cooking from French markets. I even grew a vegetable garden in high school. I just loved the process of taking beautiful ingredients and with a light hand, turning them into something delicious that made people happy."

Did you have a favorite dish your Mom would make?

Jody: "My mother is a great cook and used to make all kinds of interesting things from lamb curry to Provencal braised beef with orange and olives. One of my favorite things was a side dish of semolina gnocchi that she made with the beef. It's the foundation for a recipe I make today."

Do your kids, Oliver and Roxanne, cook?

Jody: "Yes they do. My son Oliver loves to bring friends around the table at his apartment. He has discovered he knows more than he thought he did. He learned by osmosis. And he's a good cook."

Any special memories around the table you'd like to share?

Jody: "On Marathon Monday, friends of ours who were stranded from their car and shaken by the events of the day, came to our house. The dad was running and the mom and kids were at the finish line. Eight of us gathered around our table for an impromptu dinner of risotto with leftover halibut and kale pesto, and a raft of grilled asparagus and spring onions. We have never been so grateful to have people around our table."

Heat the milk with the bay leaves and thyme in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. Season with salt and pepper. When the milk is just about to boil, whisk in the semolina in a slow steady stream, beating constantly. Continue whisking until it is very thick, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Remove and discard the bay leaves.

Stir 1/4 cup of the cheese, the egg yolk and 1 tablespoon butter into the semolina mixture. Season the mixture with salt and pepper. Pour the mixture into an 8-inch glass pie plate, spread evenly with a wet spatula, and allow to cool and harden.

Once the semolina mix has hardened, cut the gnocchi into 1 1/2-inch rounds Rub a clean glass or glazed pie plate with 1/2 tablespoon butter. Distribute the ragged gnocchi pieces evenly over the bottom of the pan. Arrange the gnocchi rounds in the dish in overlapping rows. If not serving immediately, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.

If you’ve refrigerated the gnocchi, allow them to come up to room temperature.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes. If the gnocchi aren’t a lovely golden brown after 20 minutes run them under the broiler for a minute or two until they turn the proper color. Allow to rest 10 minutes before serving.

Toss the asparagus with salt and pepper and the olive oil. Spread out on a baking sheet. Put them into the oven when the gnocchi comes out and roast 5 minutes or until just tender.

To serve, put a wedge of gnocchi on 4 warm plates. Top with a bundle of asparagus. Keep warm.

Heat the remaining butter in a small saucepan over high heat until it starts to foam. Immediately add the shallot and cook until golden and the butter is a pale hazelnut brown, only a minute. Add the preserved lemon and lemon juice. The butter should foam again. Remove from the heat and spoon over the asparagus. Garnish with chervil sprigs.

You can buy preserved lemons or make your own.

To make: Use eight small lemons for a quart-sized jar. Scrub the lemons very clean before quartering them almost all the way, leaving the quarters still attached at one end. Rub the cut surfaces with kosher salt (about 2 tablespoons per lemon), and pack them into the (very clean) jar, pushing them down into the bottom. Add enough fresh lemon juice to cover the lemons, cover the jar, and leave it out on the counter for about a week, turning it upside down every so often. Refrigerate the jarred lemons and let them sit for another month, with an occasional turn and shake. They'll keep, refrigerated, for at least a year. Rinse off before using the lemon.